TELEMUNDO SHOWS HOW IT'S DONE IN HOME-IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMMING

After conquering mainstream television, home-makeover fever has found its way to the screens of Latin TV.

AsM-m Se Hace (That's How It's Done) is a half-hour home-improvement program on Saturdays, produced by L.A.-based C2 Entertainment for Telemundo. The show marks the first Hispanic network series venture into a genre that has long been a national staple.

And considering the fact that Hispanics are enthusiastic DIY-ers, pacing the growth in home-improvement spending, it is a surprise that a show of this nature had not been produced until now.

In a 2002 research report, New Jersey-based SMR Research concluded that Hispanic households are more likely than any other group, including Anglos, to do home-improvement projects. The survey used data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau.

"Among nearly 2,000 households in the survey, headed up by a Hispanic person, 36 percent performed do-it-yourself projects over the two-year period of the survey. Among households headed by Anglos, the percentage was 28.8 percent," explained George R. Yacik, SMR's vice president and one of its lead researchers.

Each week, the show's producers will select a viewer's letter to help a lucky loved one get a one-room surprise makeover. Hosted by Miguel Chenal, Karina Dalmas and Juanita de la Torre, AsM-m Se Hace also offers viewers low-cost tips and the "before" and "after" look of the week's project.

Like home-improvement shows on mainstream television, Telemundo's version features sponsorship and product placement by companies such as Big Lots, Sears, Visa, General Motors and Motorola.

AsM-m Se Hace airs at noon Saturdays on WSCV-Ch. 51.

Also on Saturdays and making its network debut is the educational series about pregnancy and parenting, Todo BebM-i (All Baby), hosted by Jeannette Kaplun, Maggie JimM-inez and Adriana Abascal.

The show, which until recently aired in a few key Hispanic markets, discusses a variety of topics of interest to parents and expectant parents. It airs at 10 a.m. on WSCV-Ch. 51.

Amarte wraps up

At 9 p.m. Friday, UnivisiM-sn (WLTV-Ch. 23) airs the two-hour finale of the Mexican telenovela Amarte Es Mi Pecado (Loving You Is My Sin). The Televisa production, starring Yadhira Carrillo and Sergio Sendel, will be replaced on Oct. 25 by the much-awaited Amor Real (Real Love). This hit telenovela, also from Televisa, is set in 1880s Mexico, and stars Adela Noriega, Fernando Colunga and Mauricio Islas.

Sports anchor honored

Telemundo's sports anchor, AndrM-is Cantor, was honored with a Hispanic Heritage Award during a ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 10. Known for his famous "Goal!" call, Cantor was selected for his achievements as a sportscaster, and for inspiring youngsters in the area of sports across the United States and Latin America.

Magaly Morales writes for Zap2it.com, a division of Tribune Co. She can be reached at 954-717-4154 or Mmorales_LatinTV@ Comcast.net.